FOR many, Connie Fisher was right up there in the role of Maria in the stage version of The Sound of Music, just as Julie Andrews was in the film.

So when it was announced last month that she would never play the role again due to throat problems, the thousands who had bought tickets to see the show at Newcastle’s Theatre Royal must have wondered if they would still get their money’s worth.

It seems they will when the musical opens tomorrow, with ex-Emmerdale actress Verity Rushworth taking the lead.

Verity, 26, who played Donna Windsor-Dingle in the soap, has been playing Maria alongside Connie since the start of the year, to rave reviews.

“It’s been quite a life-change!” she admits. “I’d been doing it since January and was supposed to finish in August and with a week or two’s notice they asked me if I could finish the tour.

“It was very last-minute but I was more excited as I had done it for six months and I now get the opportunity to carry on what I am doing, which is fantastic, although it is like a double-edged sword because it is really, really sad circumstances and a horrible situation for Connie.”

Connie suffers from a condition – congenital sulcus vocalis – which has compromised her singing.

Despite intensive therapy her voice has not recovered enough for her to tackle the range needed to sing the part of Maria. Verity herself has to watch her voice too. “I warm up and down every day,” she explains.

“I have had training from a lady from the Royal College of Music and she knows all about the throat and how it works.

“I do look after myself. You have to when you are doing so much – it’s not only the singing but also the dialogue, the emotional scenes you are going through. Fingers crossed I haven’t had any problems yet.”

Millions know Verity for her role in Emmerdale and she is no stranger to Newcastle, having filmed Marlon proposing to her character Donna in the Toon.

Theatre, though, seems to be where she is happiest.

“It is an absolute dream role as an actress. The journey you go on is all about you, about your life as Maria and everything she goes through. “Not only is it a lovely story on its own but you get these fantastic musical numbers as well.

“I’m really making the most of it. I may never top this so I am enjoying every minute.

“There is the undercurrent of the war and takeover in Austria and seven children losing their father to the war and having to escape, risking your life, and the politics underpinning it all.

“But it is coated with this lovely music and she is an optimist. You will come out with a smile on your face.

“This role has been the role of my life so far. Getting to tour is great for people who know me from Emmerdale. You can’t always get to London, it is expensive, and I’ve got friends, family, school friends, teachers of mine who have been able to see me thanks to the tour.

“TV and theatre are completely different disciplines. I loved the diversity of Emmerdale, you were dying one week, having an affair the next, getting married then divorced.

“Everything was so fast tracked and there was the job security there as well.

“Theatre has the edge for me, though, for the pure adrenaline you get. Even though you are doing the same thing every night it is a different show every night as the audience is different, things go wrong, different people are on different parts. The reactions are instant and the applause you get at the end gives you a massive buzz you don’t get from the studio.”

The Sound of Music is at the Theatre Royal from tomorrow until October 8.